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| Home > Labour and Birth > Labor
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| | Labor in Preganancy
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 You and your baby get ready physiologically for birth in the last weeks of pregnancy. The production of colostrums, the first food for the baby after birth increases. Your uterus becomes prone to irritations. The frequency of Contractions increases both spontaneously and in response to minor disturbances such as sneezing and bumping the abdomen. These mild contractions initiate cervical changes such as ripening (soft-ening) and effacement (thinning). Your cervix may have dilated one or two centimeters before the onset of labor. The relaxation of the ligaments and cartilage in your pelvis allows greater flexibility in the joints, facilitating the pelvic bones to stretch during labor and birth. Your baby gets a bit more space in the birth canal. The tissues of the vaginal wall relax and become more elastic thereby easing the baby`s passage.
Fetal development late in pregnancy serves two purposes, firstly it triggers labor and secondly he or she gets ready for independent existence. The fetus stores iron at a rapid rate in the last weeks of pregnancy. It is enough to meet his needs for the next four to six months. The breast milk is deficient in iron and so this iron buildup supplements the breast milk. The fetus puts on fat in order to maintain her own body temperature. He gains weight and strength. The maturing of fetal adrenal glands promotes the secretion of steroid hormones. The lung is matured by the effect of these hormones. The matured placental membranes which separate the fetal and ma-ternal circulations become more porous, promoting the anti-bodies to cross from you to your baby. The baby is protected for months against diseases which the mother is immune to.
The baby equips itself adequately to survive outside your body. This goes hand in hand with his production of hormones. These hormones are mixed with your circulation and play a key role in triggering some of the changes that start labor. Another important factor is the readiness of your own body, the contractions the loosing of the pelvis etc. Usually, when the time is right for both you and the baby, labor begins.
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